


That shade of red

by MarchesaMagenta



Category: Jane the Virgin (TV)
Genre: F/F, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-19
Updated: 2018-04-18
Packaged: 2019-04-24 21:29:47
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,062
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14364081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarchesaMagenta/pseuds/MarchesaMagenta
Summary: JR gets jealous of Petra’s agent and shows she can be just as big a mess as Petra.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I started writing this after Chapter 78 (4x14), and now some things have happened in the show that are inconsistent with what I wrote. So let’s say that this story takes place a few months after Chapter 79 (4x15), in which Petra and JR get serious, but I’ll assume that the murder charges against Petra were dropped and that Magda never shows her face again.

JR recognized that lipstick. Ravish-me red. She had only seen Petra wear it one other time—that day she had come to JR’s office in a midnight-blue dress with a plunging neckline, all pouty lips and “come hither” eyes.

They were sitting in Petra’s office at the Marbella, having just finished going over a contract for a new construction deal. Even though Petra had her own team of lawyers to handle these sorts of deals, and even though JR did not specialize in contract law, Petra always insisted that JR take a final look “just to make sure they’re not screwing me over,” as she put it. And JR didn’t really mind because she knew it was mostly an excuse to get her to come see Petra in the middle of the day. Usually they would have lunch after their “business meeting,” but today…

“Are you meeting someone for lunch?” JR asked, raising an inquisitive eyebrow as Petra finished applying her lipstick. Petra pressed her lips together to smooth out the color and then closed the mirror compact.

“Oh, sorry. I forgot to tell you. We can’t have lunch today because I’m meeting my book agent.”

“Your book agent?”

“Yes, for my lifestyle book, remember? Since the murder charges were dropped, Jeffrey says that _several_ publishers are interested.”

“I see…” She wondered, _Jeffrey…hmm…Why does that name sound familiar?_

“I have to go.” Petra stood up and grabbed her purse, and JR looked her over from head to toe. Form-fitting white dress with a keyhole cutout and strappy gold high-heel sandals. Definitely hot…but also typical Petra. _Hmm…nothing unusual there…_

 _But that lipstick, on the other hand…_  

Petra leaned over and gently cupped the side of JR’s face.

“I’ll see you tonight.”

JR put her hand on top of Petra’s and stroked her fingers. “Yup.”

They lingered there for a moment, and then Petra turned and left.

JR sighed and shook her head. _Get a hold of yourself, Jane! So what if Petra is wearing red lipstick?!_  

JR walked out to her car, chiding herself for being so silly.  She was almost back to her office when she suddenly remembered who “Jeffrey” was. 

JR had been flipping through magazines in the doctor’s office, waiting for her mom, when she had come across the article: “Miami’s Most-Eligible Bachelors.” Normally pieces like this didn’t interest JR in the least, but she was bored, so she ended up reading it, laughing at the hyperbolic descriptions. There were plenty of doctors and lawyers, pro athletes and businessmen (including one of JR’s former clients!), and then there had been one that stood out. “Jeffrey Mullins, book agent to the stars.”

_Shit!!_

JR still remembered his photo. Tall, dark, and handsome in a snazzy suit with a cocksure smile. She could picture him in her mind’s eye, flashing that smile at Petra, greeting her with a peck on the cheek, pulling out her chair for her…

And almost without thinking, JR found herself speeding back toward the Marbella.

 _What is wrong with me?!_    JR had never been the jealous type. At least, not before she met Petra. But that was the thing, wasn’t it? Petra made her, well, a little bit loopy. JR had a rule against sleeping with clients—and yet she had resisted for all of five seconds before hopping into Petra’s bed. She had a rule against moving in with women with kids—and now she couldn’t imagine having breakfast without Ellie and Anna there.

And JR had a rule against snooping on her girlfriends, and yet here she was, peeking out from behind a pillar in the Marbella restaurant.

Petra and Jeffrey were sitting at a table in the middle of the dining room, much too far away for JR to hear their conversation.

Petra was listening intently to whatever Jeffrey was saying, an amused smile on her lips. _Those ruby-red lips!_ Jeffrey leaned forward conspiratorially and beckoned Petra closer. Petra leaned in so that their faces were mere inches apart, and JR felt her pulse racing. _Oh no!!_ But then Petra burst out laughing and sat back, and Jeffrey looked supremely pleased with himself.

Jeffrey glanced down at his phone, said something to Petra, and then stood up. Petra stood up too and extended her hand toward him. “ _Thank you for coming_ ,” she seemed to be saying. Jeffrey took her hand and shook it. And then he lifted Petra’s hand to his lips and kissed it before turning and walking away.

 _That bastard!!_ JR was livid. In her outrage, JR backed away from the pillar so quickly that she didn’t see the waiter behind her until it was too late. She stepped right into his path, and he tripped and fell, spilling a tray of food all over the floor.

JR looked up and saw Petra staring at her. _Uh-oh!_

“I’m so sorry!” JR helped the waiter to his feet. Then Petra was there in full-on boss mode.

“Randy, watch where you’re going!” she snapped.

“Actually, it was my fault—” JR tried to interject.

“Apologize to her at once!” Petra commanded.

Randy cowered under Petra’s fierce glare and mumbled a meek “I’m sorry” in JR’s direction.

“Now get this cleaned up right away!”

After Randy scurried away, Petra turned to JR, and her expression softened. “What are you doing here? Did something happen?”

“Oh, no, I uh…” _Think fast Jane!_ “I just forgot my phone in your office, so I had to come back to get it.” _Yes, nailed it!_ “How was your lunch?”

“Great! Jeffrey and I went over a few chapters, and he seemed _very_ enthusiastic.” 

“Fantastic…” JR smiled through gritted teeth.

“Actually,” Petra lowered her voice and leaned toward JR. “I think Jeffrey has a bit of a crush on me.”

“Oh, really?” JR tried to appear unconcerned, but she could feel her blood pressure skyrocketing.

“Yes, it was _quite_ obvious.” Petra must have seen something off in JR’s expression, because she asked, almost teasingly, “That doesn’t bother you, does it?” 

“What?!” JR exclaimed. “No!”

Petra broke out into a huge grin. “You _are_ jealous!”

JR scoffed. “Of Mr. Three-piece suit? _Please_.”

“How did you know he was wearing a three-piece suit?” 

 _Oh shit!_ “Uhh…”

Petra crossed her arms and cocked her head. “Were you _spying_ on me?”

“What?! Of course not!!”

Petra raised an eyebrow.

“I just… _happened_ to see him leave as I was walking past the restaurant.”

Petra scrutinized JR for a long moment, and some unreadable expression flashed in her eyes and was gone. Then Petra straightened and released her arms. “Fine. This is why I’m _so_ glad you’re not the jealous type. When Rafael and I were dating— _oh my god_ —he would have thrown a _fit_ if I told him some other guy had a crush on me.”

JR forced her face into a semblance of a smile, but inwardly, she imagined getting a dartboard with Jeffrey’s picture on it. _Or maybe a punching bag._

“And then Milos—if he had seen Jeffrey kiss me on the cheek like that—he probably would have tied him up and tossed him in the ocean or something.”

Petra stepped closer to JR and squeezed both of hands. “But you’re not like that, are you, Jane? _You_ wouldn’t be jealous. _You_ trust me.”

Jane laughed awkwardly. “A-Absolutely! Without a doubt.”

Petra looked her in the eye for a moment, and then released her hands. “Good. Because Jeffrey and I will be spending _a lot_ of time together over the next few months.”

JR stiffened. She did not want that suave playboy anywhere near Petra. She wavered. _Maybe I should just ditch the cool girlfriend act and admit that I’m jealous…?_  

But before JR could say anything, Krishna appeared, looking somewhat frantic. “Ms. Solano, your 1pm is here!”

“I’ve got to go.” Petra gave JR a quick peck on the lips and then walked away with Krishna. 

JR sighed. She still couldn’t believe that Petra had rehired her, after everything that had happened, but as Petra had said, “there’s an old Czech saying, the squeaky mouse doesn’t bite twice,” whatever that meant.

JR walked to her car for the second time that day, and as she drove back to her office, all she could think about was Jeffrey and his smug smile.

 _This is so not me!_ JR had never been jealous like this before. She’d never freaked out when her previous girlfriends met up with attractive men or women. She had trusted them. And JR _did_ trust Petra. _And besides, I’m soo much hotter than that Jeffrey dude._ So JR took a deep breath and resolved not to be uber-possessive. She vowed to keep her cool...

…but that didn’t mean she couldn’t do a little digging into Jeffrey Mullin’s past!


	2. Chapter 2

JR was still knee-deep in research several hours later when someone knocked on her door.

“Hi.” Petra strutted in, and JR did a double take. Petra was wearing that ruby-red lipstick again, but now she had a strapless, red mini-dress to match. A _very_ short mini-dress. With her lustrous locks freshly coiffed, Petra looked every bit the blonde bombshell of JR’s dreams. _Whoaaa!_

“Hey, baby. You look nice.” JR looked her up and down appreciatively. “Are we going somewhere?”

“Well, I am. So listen, Jeffrey called to invite me to some party that his publisher friends are hosting, so I won’t be home for dinner tonight.”

_What???!!!_ _Jeffrey AGAIN??!!_ JR was too stunned to respond. Then her eyes flitted down and she realized that all of her research on Jeffrey strewn across her desk. _Shit!!_ Jeffrey’s picture was peeking out from under a stack of papers. JR shoved the photo under some folders and slammed her laptop closed.

She hopped out of her chair and moved in front of her desk, hoping to block Petra’s view. “Umm, actually that works out great then. I’m actually stuck in the middle of a case.”

“Okay then. I already arranged for one of the nannies to stay overnight with the twins, so you don’t have to worry about them. And I’ll probably be home late, so don’t wait up for me.”

JR felt her blood pressure skyrocket, but she forced herself to maintain her composure. “Okay. I’ll probably be home late too.”

Petra closed the distance between them, and JR realized she was wearing the perfume JR liked best on her. “Don’t work too hard.” Then Petra leaned in to kiss her, and JR felt the rest of the world fall away. She wrapped her arms around Petra and pulled her closer until there was no space between them. JR had always loved how perfectly their bodies fit together—eyes to eyes, lips to lips, heart to heart.

A minute—or perhaps several minutes later, JR wasn’t sure—Petra pulled away. “I’ve got to go,” she said breathily.   Then she turned and left.

As soon as she was gone, JR felt instantly bereft. She collapsed on the couch and put her head in her hands.

If JR had been thinking clearly, she might have thought it strange that Petra came all the way to her office to tell JR that she would be home late, when a phone call or text would have sufficed. But she wasn't thinking clearly. All she could think about was Petra in that red dress flirting with some handsome publisher playboys. _Damn it, why does Petra have to be everyone’s type?!_

So much for remaining calm and collected. JR was absolutely, 100% freaking out. _But why?_  Yes, JR _was_ jealous, but that didn’t explain her overwhelming panic.   _So what was it?_ And then it hit JR like a gut punch. She wasn’t really afraid that Petra would cheat on her, no. She was afraid that Petra would get swept off her feet by some guy and forget all about her.

No more mornings waking up with Petra curled up next to her, nuzzling her neck. No more evenings lounging on the couch together, sipping wine and unwinding after a long day. No more sweet kisses; no more rapturous nights. The thought of losing Petra was actually… _terrifying_!

So JR ran to her car and raced to find Petra.

**

JR followed Petra out to Bayside marina and parked a few cars behind her. JR trailed her at a distance, still trying to work out how to approach her and what to say. Petra boarded one of the luxury yachts docked at the pier, and JR walked to the edge of the gangplank and hesitated.

The dockhand frowned at her. “The yacht’s about to leave. Are you getting on or not?”

The boat horn blared. _What now?!_ If JR boarded the yacht, there would be no turning back. But if she didn’t board now, Petra might sail off with some handsome yacht owner and never look back. So JR gritted her teeth and crossed onto the yacht.

JR expected to find a bustling party, but the upper deck was oddly empty. She reached the stairs to the interior cabin and took a deep breath before descending into the darkness.

“Petra?! What are you doing here?!”

The room was empty except for Petra, who was leaning against the bar and looked completely unsurprised to see her. "Shouldn't I be asking you that? What are _you_ doing here?"

“I, uh, I was meeting a client out at the marina, and I guess I, uh, got onto the wrong yacht!”

Petra crossed her arms and gave her a look.

“Okay fine, I was following you!”

“Why would you do that?”

“Because, because…”  
“Because you were jealous?”

“Well—”

“I knew it! I knew you didn’t trust me!”

“No, that’s not it! It’s just…Wait a minute. What happened to your party?”

Petra shifted uneasily. "There is no party. I made it up."

"What?”

“To see if you would follow me, which you did!”

“So you lied to me?”

“Only because you lied to me! You said you weren’t jealous, but clearly you are! I _saw_ you watching us at the Marbella, and I _saw_ the research on your desk.”

“Okay fine, I admit it! I was jealous!"

“Of _Jeffrey_? But why?”

JR sighed. “I don’t know. I guess maybe because you were so dressed up for lunch…”

“Dressed up? I wasn’t dressed up.”

“Well, you were wearing that red lipstick which you wore that one time when, you know, you came to my office…”

“So you got jealous because of this _lipstick_?” JR gave Petra a sheepish grin, and Petra laughed.

“Just so you know, I’m only wearing this lipstick because I couldn’t find any of the other ones. I think the twins took them to play dress-up or something.” 

“Ohhh…” JR realized the hilarity of her error and shook her head, chuckling.

Petra stepped closer and took JR’s hand, her face now achingly sincere. “But you really thought I would want to cheat on you?” she asked softly.

JR sighed. “No, it’s just…” She took Petra’s other hand and let her typical cocky façade fade away. “I guess a part of me has always worried that you might, I don’t know, meet some guy you really like and decide that this—us—was just some fun game, and then you’d ditch me and go riding off into the sunset with him.”

Petra smiled and squeezed JR’s hands. “Come with me. I want to show you something.” She led JR up the stairs and back onto the deck.

 

“Look.” Petra pointed ahead at the horizon. In the distance, the red-orange sun was dipping toward the sea. “There’s only one person I want to go riding off into the sunset with, and that’s you.” Petra stepped closer to JR, looking at her with those sincere eyes. “Because this _is_ an epic romance—at least for me.”

A wave of overwhelming tenderness surged through JR. She remembered when she told Petra that it wasn’t, back when she was still trying to deny her own burgeoning feelings. Not anymore.

JR put her arms around Petra. “For me too.” Then she pulled Petra even closer and kissed her fiercely, desperately. Petra’s arms tightened around her, and once again, everything else melted away. Petra’s head tilted back as JR’s lips trailed down her neck, and the scent of Petra’s perfume (JR’s favorite) drove JR mad with desire. She let her fingers slide under the edge of Petra’s very-short dress, and then—

“Uh, Ms. Solano?”

Petra and JR pulled apart. “Yes?” Petra snapped as she rearranged the hem of her dress.

A man with a captain’s hat eyed them uneasily. “We’re back at the dock.”

JR had been too distracted to realize that they’d traveled all the way back to the pier. _That’s odd…don’t these cruises usually last a few hours?_

“Great, thank you!” Petra was back in business mode.

“I hope you, uh, enjoyed the tour.”

_Tour?_ JR shot Petra a puzzled look, which Petra ignored. “Yes, very much! We’ll be in touch.” Before JR could say anything, Petra steered her down the gangplank and onto the pier.

Once they reached solid ground, JR stopped. “What did he mean by ‘tour’?”

Petra avoided her gaze. “Well, you know how I said I was thinking about a cruise package for the Marbella?”

“Vaguely.”

“So I’ve been checking out the various yacht operators, and this one just gave us a tour.”

JR gave her an incredulous look.

“What?! I like to multi-task.”

JR could only shake her head and laugh.

 

“I have something else to confess,” Petra added nervously.

JR raised an eyebrow.

“So you’re not the only one who has some trust issues.”

JR crossed her arms. “What did you do?

“Wellll, I _might_ have bribed your assistant to, uh, encourage any tall and blonde female clients to, uh, find representation elsewhere...”

“What?!”

“I’m sorry!” Petra pouted.

JR knew she should probably be angry, or at least disturbed, but looking into Petra’s big, blue puppy-dog eyes, all she could really think was:

“I love you, Petra Solano.”

Petra’s eyes widened in surprise, and then she began to beam. “I knew you’d say it first.”

JR laughed.

“I love you too, Jane Ramos.”

This time, when they kissed, it was tender and sweet.

 

“Just promise me one thing,” JR whispered when they finally pulled apart.

“What?”

“Don’t ever wear that lipstick for anyone but me.”


End file.
